Stoner-Thomas bus driver not charged after allegedly tying student

Driver, monitor no longer work for county school system

Published: Friday, May 16, 2014 at 4:02 p.m.

Last Modified: Friday, May 16, 2014 at 4:02 p.m.

No charges will be filed against a bus driver who allegedly tied down a Stoner-Thomas student last month on the way to school.

The driver along with a bus monitor are no longer employees with Davidson County Schools, said Superintendent Dr. Lory Morrow. She would not confirm whether they were fired.

Davidson County Assistant District Attorney Greg Brown said after reviewing documents, interviewing the involved parties and watching video footage from the bus no prosecution will occur.

The Davidson County Sheriff's Office started investigating an incident after the Davidson County Department of Social Services was contacted when 10-year-old Allen Logan showed up at school April 3 with red marks on his forearm close to his wrist, said Allen's father, Chris Logan.

Stoner-Thomas is the school for students with profound physical and/or mental developmental disabilities. Allen has hypertension and autism.

Allen has been a student there for the past six years. The family lives off Hickory Tree Road, and Allen is on the bus for about 90 minutes twice a day.

Logan said representatives from child protective services showed up at his home to talk with his wife, Kerri Conley, and interviewed other children there after the school social worker reported suspected child abuse.

Logan suggested to the principal to check everybody who came in contact with Allen on that specific day before arriving to school because when he left the house everything was fine.

"At that time the staff did not know where it came from. They are required by law as a teacher to report it. I would have done the same," Logan said. "The principal did what he was supposed to do. I'm happy with the principal and teachers. I really think the school did what it was supposed to do."

A couple of days later Logan said he was contacted by the sheriff's office about footage that was taken on the bus. He said in the video one cannot actually see the bus driver tie down Allen. It shows the driver using something like a scarf to make a big knot similar to the motion of tying a shoe lace in front of Allen, Logan explained.

Brown said the red marks on the child's arm did not cause any bruising. He also noted there was no struggle or signs of fear in Allen's eyes from the video. He said the bus driver and monitor were talking to the student in a clear and calm voice.

"There was no criminal intent," he said. "From the interaction on the video, they were all concerned with the safety of the child."

The state has a law called the Deborah Greenblatt Act that outlines what's allowed for safety restraints in public schools. The act states mechanical restraints are not allowed such as tying down, taping or strapping down of a student.

The buses do have seat belts in the first four seats in the front. Some of the seat belts are integrated and designed like a car seat but are built into the seat.

If something else is required to keep a student in a seat for safety reasons while riding the bus, the information is included in the student's individualized education program or behavior intervention plan. For example, a student in a wheelchair may need to be strapped down a certain way with the chair.

Logan said the bus driver asked him about three weeks prior to the incident if there was anything she could do to keep Allen in his seat. He thought that was school officials' responsibility and suggested she talk with the principal and transportation department officials.

"The school system should already have something on the bus for students like Allen," Logan said.

Logan noted this is the first time that Allen has being very active and a little more hyper than usual. He said they have been working with doctors to prescribe medications.

Logan said he wished the driver would have talked with the school's administrator, transportation personnel and him before taking matters into her own hands. He's unsure how many times Allen has been tied down.

"Regardless she needed to talk to her superior, come to me and then suggest something," Logan said. "The bus driver really did the wrong thing. She made a bad choice of handling it on her own. The school system did the right thing to get rid of her."

Deneesha Edwards can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 213, or at deneesha.edwards@the-dispatch.com. Follow Deneesha on Twitter: @LexDispatchDE

<p>No charges will be filed against a bus driver who allegedly tied down a Stoner-Thomas student last month on the way to school.</p><p>The driver along with a bus monitor are no longer employees with Davidson County Schools, said Superintendent Dr. Lory Morrow. She would not confirm whether they were fired.</p><p>Davidson County Assistant District Attorney Greg Brown said after reviewing documents, interviewing the involved parties and watching video footage from the bus no prosecution will occur. </p><p>The Davidson County Sheriff's Office started investigating an incident after the Davidson County Department of Social Services was contacted when 10-year-old Allen Logan showed up at school April 3 with red marks on his forearm close to his wrist, said Allen's father, Chris Logan.</p><p>Stoner-Thomas is the school for students with profound physical and/or mental developmental disabilities. Allen has hypertension and autism.</p><p>Allen has been a student there for the past six years. The family lives off Hickory Tree Road, and Allen is on the bus for about 90 minutes twice a day.</p><p>Logan said representatives from child protective services showed up at his home to talk with his wife, Kerri Conley, and interviewed other children there after the school social worker reported suspected child abuse. </p><p>Logan suggested to the principal to check everybody who came in contact with Allen on that specific day before arriving to school because when he left the house everything was fine.</p><p>"At that time the staff did not know where it came from. They are required by law as a teacher to report it. I would have done the same," Logan said. "The principal did what he was supposed to do. I'm happy with the principal and teachers. I really think the school did what it was supposed to do."</p><p>A couple of days later Logan said he was contacted by the sheriff's office about footage that was taken on the bus. He said in the video one cannot actually see the bus driver tie down Allen. It shows the driver using something like a scarf to make a big knot similar to the motion of tying a shoe lace in front of Allen, Logan explained. </p><p>Brown said the red marks on the child's arm did not cause any bruising. He also noted there was no struggle or signs of fear in Allen's eyes from the video. He said the bus driver and monitor were talking to the student in a clear and calm voice. </p><p>"There was no criminal intent," he said. "From the interaction on the video, they were all concerned with the safety of the child."</p><p>The state has a law called the Deborah Greenblatt Act that outlines what's allowed for safety restraints in public schools. The act states mechanical restraints are not allowed such as tying down, taping or strapping down of a student. </p><p>The buses do have seat belts in the first four seats in the front. Some of the seat belts are integrated and designed like a car seat but are built into the seat. </p><p>If something else is required to keep a student in a seat for safety reasons while riding the bus, the information is included in the student's individualized education program or behavior intervention plan. For example, a student in a wheelchair may need to be strapped down a certain way with the chair. </p><p>Logan said the bus driver asked him about three weeks prior to the incident if there was anything she could do to keep Allen in his seat. He thought that was school officials' responsibility and suggested she talk with the principal and transportation department officials.</p><p>"The school system should already have something on the bus for students like Allen," Logan said.</p><p>Logan noted this is the first time that Allen has being very active and a little more hyper than usual. He said they have been working with doctors to prescribe medications. </p><p>Logan said he wished the driver would have talked with the school's administrator, transportation personnel and him before taking matters into her own hands. He's unsure how many times Allen has been tied down.</p><p>"Regardless she needed to talk to her superior, come to me and then suggest something," Logan said. "The bus driver really did the wrong thing. She made a bad choice of handling it on her own. The school system did the right thing to get rid of her."</p><p>Deneesha Edwards can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 213, or at deneesha.edwards@the-dispatch.com. Follow Deneesha on Twitter: @LexDispatchDE</p>